“He was always before men’s eyes; a course of action which, by increasing our familiarity with great men, diminishes our respect for them.”

—  Livy

Book XXXV, sec. 10
History of Rome

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update Oct. 1, 2023. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "He was always before men’s eyes; a course of action which, by increasing our familiarity with great men, diminishes our…" by Livy?
Livy photo
Livy 70
Roman historian -59–17 BC

Related quotes

John Locke photo

“To prejudge other men's notions before we have looked into them is not to show their darkness but to put out our own eyes.”

John Locke (1632–1704) English philosopher and physician
Josip Broz Tito photo

“Churchill, he is a great man. He is, of course, our enemy and has always been the enemy of Communism, but he is an enemy one must respect, an enemy one likes to have.”

Josip Broz Tito (1892–1980) Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman

Jasper Ridley, Tito: A Biography (Constable and Company Ltd., 1994), p. 323.
Other

Calvin Coolidge photo

“His mortal frame has vanished, but his spirit increases with the increasing years the richest legacy of the greatest century. Men show by what they worship what they are. It is no accident that before the great example of American manhood, our people stand with respect and reverence. In Abraham Lincoln is revealed our ideal; the hope of our country fulfilled. He was the incarnation of what America was to be. Through him, the Almighty bestowed upon the nation a new birth of freedom that this dear land of ours might be returned to the health of its fathers.”

Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933) American politician, 30th president of the United States (in office from 1923 to 1929)

1920s, Duty of Government (1920)

Marilyn Monroe photo

“Men are always ready to respect anything that bores them.”

Marilyn Monroe (1926–1962) American actress, model, and singer

Source: My Story

Borís Pasternak photo

“He is her glory. Any woman could say it. For every one of them, God is in her child. Mothers of great men must have been familiar with this feeling, but then, all women are mothers of great men -- it isn't their fault if life disappoints them later.”

Borís Pasternak book Doctor Zhivago

Source: Doctor Zhivago

William Joyce photo

“I would gladly say 'Heil Hitler!' and at once part company with him, realizing what a pitiable insult it is to such a great man to try to flatter him with such an imitation which he has always disdained. His way is for Germany, ours is for Britain; let us tread our paths with mutual respect, which is rarely increased by borrowing.”

William Joyce (1906–1946) British fascist and propaganda broadcaster

National Socialism Now, pamphlet issued by the National Socialist League c. 1938.

Perry Anderson photo

“Great men have foibles for which they can be forgiven; including an occasional failure to see where their greatness lies, or what might diminish it.”

Perry Anderson (1938) British historian

Spectrum: From Right to Left in the World of Ideas (2005), Ch. 13. "The Vanquished Left, Eric Hobsbawm" (2002)

E.E. Cummings photo

“great men burn bridges before they come to them”

E.E. Cummings (1894–1962) American poet
Hermann von Helmholtz photo

“The quantity of force which can be brought into action in the whole of Nature is unchangeable, and can neither be increased nor diminished.”

Hermann von Helmholtz (1821–1894) physicist and physiologist

Summarizing the Law of Conservation of Force, in "On the Conservation of Force" (1862), p. 280
Popular Lectures on Scientific Subjects (1881)

John Flanagan photo

“What the devil is Chocho?' Will whispered.
Horace's grin broadened. 'You are. It's what the men call you,' he said. Then he added, 'It's a term of great respect.'
Behind them, Halt nodded confirmation. 'Great respect,' he agreed.”

John Flanagan (1873–1938) Irish-American hammer thrower

Source: The Emperor of Nihon-Ja

Related topics